njano
njano is the Swahili word for yellow.
The word njano is used as an adjective to describe something that possesses the color yellow.
Meaning: having yellow as its color (adj)
Which one should you use?
While njano is the adjective for the color yellow, the related noun manjano refers specifically to turmeric, which is often used to describe a deep yellow or orange-yellow hue.
Related words
How does it change in a sentence?
The adjective njano is invariant, which means it does not change its form to agree with a noun's gender or number.
Did you know?
- In many East African communities, the concept of 'yellow' is conceptually linked to healing, because the spice manjano is a staple in traditional medicinal-skin treatments.
- The word order for colors in Swahili is the reverse of English, requiring you to place njano after the noun, such as saying 'car yellow' instead of 'yellow car'.
- The noun manjano refers to both the color yellow and the spice turmeric, as the spice was the primary source of yellow dye.
Examples in context
- Tazama ua la manjano!Look at the yellow flower!
- Ninaipenda rangi ya manjano.I love the color yellow.
- Njano ni rangi ya jua.Yellow is the color of the sun.
- Ninahitaji vitambaa vya njano kwa mradi wangu.I need yellow fabrics for my project.
- Gari langu ni la rangi ya njano.My car is yellow.
- Ua hili ni la njano.This flower is yellow.
Example conversation
Aisha and Said are looking at a box of crayons.
- AishaSaid, ungependa rangi gani?Said, which color would you like?
- SaidNinataka ile njano, tafadhali.I want the yellow one, please.
- AishaHii hapa ni njano.Here is the yellow one.
- SaidAsante sana, Aisha.Thank you very much, Aisha.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry njano, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
